Land purchase near Moonstone extends coastal trail

Press release from the Trinidad Coastal Land Trust and Green Diamond Resource Company:

The Trinidad Coastal Land Trust (TCLT) and Green Diamond Resource Company (GDRC) are pleased to announce the sale from GDRC to TCLT of a 14-acre property along the Little River near Moonstone Beach. TCLT was formed in 1979 and its purposes include acquiring, holding, and developing land for public access and trails and to insure the benefits of sound land use planning in an effort to protect the beauty of the North Coast. The State Coastal Conservancy (SCC) was awarded funding for the acquisition from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service through the North America Wetlands Conservation Act. The SCC passed the funds on to the TCLT to acquire the property from GDRC in April 2015.

The property sits south of the cul-de-sac at the south end of Scenic Drive and west of Highway 101. It is above Little River and Moonstone Beach and includes approximately 1,000 feet of riverfront beach along the east side of Little River. The property lies along a potential route of the California Coastal Trail as identified in the Little River Trail Feasibility Study completed by the Redwood Community Action Agency in 2014 (http://www.naturalresourcesservices.org/publications/Little River Trail Feasibility Study). The property includes a trail easement dedication for the California Coastal Trail (CCT) and potential spur trails to the Little River estuary. TCLT intends to manage it for open space until the CCT is extended across the Little River, at which time trail development for public access will occur. Once completed, the trail will link the Hammond Trail system with Scenic Drive.

The public is invited to attend a ceremonial transfer of title on Thursday, July 9, 2015 at 1 PM. The ceremony will be held at the south end of Scenic Drive. To get there from the south, take Highway 101 north to the Westhaven Exit, turn left at Westhaven Drive, and left again at Scenic Drive. Go approximately ¼ mile to the end of Scenic Drive, just past the southbound Highway 101 on-ramp. From the north, take the 6th Avenue exit, turn left on 6th Avenue to Westhaven Drive, turn right on Westhaven Drive and follow it to Scenic Drive. Turn left at Scenic Drive and go approximately ¼ mile to the end of Scenic Drive, just past the southbound Highway 101 on-ramp.